This disclosure relates generally to a sterilizable housing for a portable electronic device assembly.
A surgical operating room must provide a relatively germ-free environment to ensure the safety of a patient. Accordingly, great care is taken not to compromise the sterility barrier of this environment. Instruments are sterilized, surgeons and nurses are scrubbed-in, and unsterilized objects are left out of the surgical operating room.
From time to time, a surgeon may require access to a personal electronic device in the surgical operating room. For example, the surgeon may wish to use such a device to download and review surgical techniques, communicate with other surgeons located outside of the sterile environment, or conduct other tasks that improve the surgeon's ability to perform surgery. In addition, the surgeon may wish to listen to music in the operating room from another device, such as an MP3 player.
Typically, these personal electronic devices are not manufactured from sterilizable materials. The devices include housings made of unsterile materials or have sensitive components that cannot be subjected to sterilization equipment or procedures. Therefore, a surgeon's preferred personal electronic device is not permitted in the sterile environment of the operating room without a sterile plastic bag around the personal electronic device.